I'm back at my apartment, and Molniya is with me. The vet said that she'll be okay if I feed her regularly and generally treat her well. They also gave her some vaccinations and provided a tag that I must put on Molniya so that I can be found easily if someone finds her.

So, I spent the rest of my money buying several necessities for Molniya. Thankfully, they didn't cost too much. I bought some food, a couple of bowls for her to eat and drink from, a litter box with plenty of litter, as well as a couple of toys for her to play with.

When I arrived at the apartment, Molniya quickly ran to my bed and hid under it, looking warily up at Moonshine, who was surprised by her appearance.

Also, I don't know how my cat even recognized me. My voice has gotten younger and my scent has surely changed since I appeared in Equestria. Really, how did she recognize me? Well, maybe Molniya isn't a name that’s used very often, so she simply answered when I called her name. Uh, I have no explanation. However, I don't even need one. I have Molniya here, and nothing else matters.

So, those books I have, time to read. I'll start with "History of Music". Reading about religion or the history of the Dark Ages may be interesting and all, but I really want to know how music came to be in Equestria. That’s a far more interesting subject than the other two, at least for me. I see myself as a musician, after all.

After I placed everything I bought in their respective places: a bag of cat food near my bed, the bowls nearby as well, and litter box and bag of litter in the toilet, I could finally relax.

I walked to my bed, took off my pants and hoodie, and lied down. I feel naked and vulnerable without my clothes, but it’s time for me to accept that I’m no longer human and that it’s perfectly okay to walk around nude, especially in one's own apartment.

Anyway, I lied on my back, propping my head up with a pillow, and used my magic to move the book to me, and open it. Well, time to read.

...

So, it’s written that a simple form of music is drum music, which is just hitting something with a hoof repeatedly. Ancient pony tribes, about two million years ago, discovered that different materials elicit different sounds when hit by a hoof. By rhythmically hitting an empty dry log, the first music came to be. Then, ponies discovered that sticks and stones could be used to create many other sounds.

I suppose that the first form of music was just rhythmical. So...

...

It's written that vocal were added to the drums, and thus the first "genre" was invented — tribal song. It had no words, however, as a singer just sang "Ah", "Oh" in different pitches for different lengths. When it was just a song to relax, the mare with the most beautiful voice in the tribe sang. If it was time to fight, a stallion sang.

Huh, that's interesting. Let's see what else they have here...

A few hours later.

I didn't notice the time fly, I've completed the book in just a few hours. That was a good read!

It turned out that there was also string music, first discovered by accident, when a pony touched a thin rope in a cave, the latter had acoustics that turned the sound into something that was perceived as beautiful. So, the first "guitars" were large. Duh, they needed a cave to play it! There were multiple strings of different thickness and material. Many years later, wood was used to create the needed acoustics.

Some time later, a thin rope was rubbed against the string, just as an experiment. Thus, they invented the first string instruments, such as violins, violas, cellos, and so on.

Then, someone figured out a key could be used to hit a string instead of a crude hoof. First, the keys were large and had to be hit by hoof rather hard to make a sound loud enough. The first pianos were bulky and didn't really look or sound very good, having only a row of white keys, the sounds of which differed greatly even with neighbouring keys.

And since then, guitars haven’t been developed much, since keyboards are still considered the pinnacle of music.

Now I know why they don't have metal here. They didn't develop guitars AT ALL! Gah!

Well, that’s just how history goes, eh? Keyboards aren’t a bad choice, though. They do make some nice sounds and noises, after all.

Alright, I think that’s enough for today. I've learned something, and tomorrow's a new day. And, surprisingly, it has three lessons of Magic. Well, since it'll be boring as hell here at the apartment, I will go to school tomorrow. Besides, I need to meet Blueblood to discuss the costumes for the coming Hallo— Nightmare Night. Maybe he has a good idea?

Wait, I still didn't try the one way to find a solution that always worked for me. Listen to music, of course, that’s what I need to do! One of the songs must give me an idea!

So, I have some bands to listen to. Let's start with... Ayreon. That band has some sci-fi stuff that I really like. It's also the first on the list, duh. And I haven't listened to it in quite a while. I should fix that.

Molniya surprised me, jumping on my chest. Well, I suppose she needs some petting.

***

11 p.m.

I've listen to almost everything I have on my smartphone. But a particular song caught my attention... Ghost — Ghuleh / Zombie Queen. I've listened to it on repeat, and I can say it has something that I need...

Oh, now I have an idea! A really good one! I just have to wait for school to tell Blueblood about it! Moonshine, as well. I think they'll both like what I’ve figured out!

Well, if they like the idea... I hope they do.

*yawn*

Oh, I think I've spent too much time reading. Though, I should ask Luna about what happened between Moonshine and me. Hhh... Difficult choice — go or stay and sleep? Better go. I need to figure everything out, otherwise some stupid crap may happen later.

The problem is — Molniya fell asleep on me. I don't want to wake her up by moving myself, and besides, she's purring so cutely!

*sigh*

No one can resist the cat.

I used my magic to carefully grasp the cat and set her down on the bed. She didn't wake up, thankfully.

Alright, time to go.

***

It's about midnight, and I'm in the Garden. I hope Luna's here somewhere. I feel really tired... Why, though? Did reading do that to me? Ah, no matter, I need to find Luna.

Well, it seems no one's here, save for the statue of that creepy Discord fellow. And a bunch of other less creepy statues. And I'm not sure I can count them a living beings. Maybe Discord is but... he's a statue right now. Statues aren't alive, as far as I know. And I hope it stays that way.

Oh, I see Luna. She sees me. Excellent, now I should ask her the questions.

"Hello, Luna." I greeted her. "I... want to ask you a question."

Luna nodded.

"Well, there was an... I don't know how to say it... an accident, I suppose. Uh..." I rubbed the back of my neck. "Well, I... got kissed by one of my classmates, a filly. And I don't know how to react."

"Oh." Luna blinked. "I think I understand your situation... You’re technically an adult, and she is eight years old, correct?"

"Nine. Not that it makes any difference." I replied.

"Well, kisses in our society are a sign of love and care, depending on who kisses whom." Luna explained. "So, that filly has definitely showed her affection towards you. That is natural. Love, as we know it, may appear from the age of eight, sometimes seven. If you wonder, nothing beyond kisses happens until the age of thirteen."

"So, by "beyond kisses" you mean... sex?" I asked warily, finding myself blush. Oh, how much I hate talking about this subject with adults! Fuck!

"Mostly touching." Luna replied. "But it can happen, yes."

Oh damn, sex at the age of thirteen... Well, ponies grow up fast, it seems. Still weird to me, though... Crap, most people would freak out because of this. I? I need to stay calm. Besides, ponies have their own rules. Nothing bad can happen if a condom or any other stuff like that is used. I bet they have contraception spells here. Huh, that would be neat back on Earth.

"You seem troubled." Luna took a step towards me. "Is something the matter?"

"Well, um, humans have other views on that stuff." I replied nervously. "And, uh, what should I do now? Like, what if the filly confesses her love for me or something like that?"

"In your case..." Luna sighed. "Even I don't know. But don't just ignore the signs! That would hurt the filly deeply. Sometimes, ponies can't find love for themselves after a harsh rejection."

"But I can't just tell her the reason!" I sighed shakily. "Look... If I do that, I... I don't know! I don't want to know! And I don't want to hurt her feeling either."

"Calm down, Flame." Luna put a hoof on my shoulder. "Everything will work out."

"How?" I looked up and asked.

"Just listen to your heart."

"Hearts just beat." I deadpanned. "That kind of advice won't lead to anything. Better tell me, what should I tell her? What should I do?"

"I'm not sure my advice will help you." Luna sighed. "I don’t have much experience in the love department either."

"Oh, if I could just become at least sixteen!" I threw my hooves in the air. "It'd be so much simpler!"

"It would." Luna nodded. "Maybe... Maybe turning you into an adult would help. But the only spell that I know only does so temporarily."

"Crap." I muttered, then sighed. "Well, it seems I’ll have to deal with it on my own. Thanks for the help anyway... You did all you could, Luna."

Without waiting for her reply, I headed back to the apartment. Fuck that shit, I'm going to get some sleep.

***

As I opened the door to my apartment, I saw Moonshine looking under my bed.

"...I promise I won't hurt you." I heard her saying. "I'm Moonshine. Moon-shine. I'm his friend. Can we be friends, too?"

The door closed behind me with an audible click. Moonshine turned around, noticed me, and blushed in embarrassment.

"Molniya." I called my cat, who jumped from under the bed and raced to me. Pressing herself against my foreleg, she looked warily at Moonshine. "That’s her name." I explained to the filly.

"Um... Can I pet her?" she asked nervously.

"You need to wait before my cat gets used to you." I looked at Molniya. "Hey." I said, she looked at me. "Don't be afraid." I carefully petted the cat. "Moonshine is a friend. My friend, your friend." I explained to my cat. I don't know cats much, but they sure do understand some things. "She won't hurt you. She's a friend." I carefully pushed the cat towards Moonshine.

"Meow?" the cat quietly sounded, then looked at me.

"Yes, a friend." I nodded. "Go on." I pushed the cat a little bit harder than before. She stood up and walked to Moonshine, who was sitting motionless.

My cat started to sniff her. The sniffing continued for a few minutes before Molniya relaxed a bit. Moonshine carefully moved her hoof to the cat, and tried to pet her. Molniya quickly ducked and looked at Moonshine's hoof. She sniffed it, and then pressed her head against it. The filly carefully moved her hoof, petting the cat.

Well, contact has been established.

"She's taking a liking to you already." I smiled at Moonshine, receiving a gentle smile in return. "She isn't usually that fast to accept others. You're lucky."

"Um... thanks." Moonshine replied.

"No, thank the cat. She thinks you're nice." I said.

"Uh..." the filly looked at Molniya, who looked up and met Moonshine's eyes. "Thank you."

The cat replied with a meow, and rubbed her head against Moonshine's foreleg.

Well, it seems everything between those two is good, for now.

Time to go get some sleep. I feel my eyelids becoming heavier with each passing second.

Author's Notes:

Aureon is rock opera with sci-fi theme. They have good music, trust me. My favorite album is "Human Equation". Give it a try.